Classic cocktails are back in the spotlight—but today’s drinkers are asking for more than throwbacks. They want bold flavor, layered nuance, and a little unexpected edge. Enter the Aviation: a delicate gin cocktail from the early 20th century that once soared on floral subtlety and sky-blue charm.
Now, it’s time for a new flight path.
By subbing gin for bourbon, specifically our core Bardstown Bourbon, you unlock something deeper, richer, and altogether more dynamic. It’s a modern remix that respects the original while confidently breaking the rules. In this guide, we’ll explore Aviation’s origins, walk you through the classic recipe, and then show you how to give it a bold new direction with high-rye recipe bourbon.
Where the Aviation Took Flight: A Brief History
Aviation was born in an era when the sky wasn’t the limit—it was the dream. Formulated in the early 1900s, probably by bartender Hugo Ensslin at New York’s Hotel Wallick, the cocktail was inspired by the thrill surrounding aviation, which was captivating hearts everywhere.
Its title wasn’t metaphorical. The cocktail included crème de violette, a purple liqueur that imparted the cocktail with a pale, sky-blue color. Combined with gin, maraschino liqueur, and fresh lemon juice, the outcome was light, floral, and slightly sour.
As air travel took off, so did aviation. But by the middle of the 20th century, crème de violette vanished from store shelves, and so did the cocktail. It became an old relic until the early 2000s, when the craft cocktail movement rediscovered it and brought it back into the spotlight.
Now, Aviation is an emerging cocktail again, particularly for those who adore a drink that straddles elegance and edge. And as more consumers look for flavor-forward twists, it’s only fitting that bourbon gets into the conversation.
Classic Aviation Cocktail Recipe
The classic Aviation is all about subtlety. Its construction is lean, its flavors light yet stacked, and its look? Purely Instagrammable.
Ingredients
- 2 oz Origin Series High-Rye Bourbon
- ½ oz maraschino liqueur
- ¼ oz crème de violette
- ¼ Fresh lemon juice
Instructions
Place all the ingredients in an ice-filled shaker. Shake hard to chill and mix. Strain over a chilled coupe. Garnish with a Luxardo cherry or a lemon twist, or both, if you’re fancy.
Flavor Profile
Radiant lemon and perfumy violet lead off the sip, then fade into the understated nuttiness of maraschino. It’s sophisticated, fragrant, and poised, ideal for a weekend brunch or a cocktail hour toast.
The Bourbon Aviation: A Modern Remix with Bardstown’s Core Bourbon
Why bourbon? Because bourbon brings structure, spice, and soul. And Bardstown’s Bourbon isn’t just any bourbon—it’s a bold, nuanced expression with a mash bill that includes 36% rye, delivering a lively spice, vanilla warmth, and a smooth oak finish.
This isn’t a swap. It’s an upgrade.
Bourbon Aviation Recipe
- 2 oz Origin Series High-Rye Bourbon
- ½ oz maraschino liqueur
- ¼ oz crème de violette
- 1/2 oz fresh lemon juice
Instructions
Shake everything with ice until very cold. Strain into a coupe and garnish with a brandied cherry. Gaze at the color, then drink slowly.
Flavor Profile
- Up-front: Sweet cherry and violet florals
- Mid-palate: Citrus zing goes up against warm bourbon spice
- Finish: A lingering oak and pepper note, with a silky feel
Summer Cocktail Variations for the Bourbon Curious
It’s confident and compelling — a cocktail with presence. The Bourbon Aviation doesn’t just reinterpret a classic; it completely redefines it.
Want to keep the bourbon innovation going strong this summer? Here’s a few other new riffs which are designed for warm evenings, garden soirees, and golden hours that linger just a little longer.
Lavender Highball
Light, bubbly, and just right.
Ingredients
- 1½ oz Bardstown Bourbon
- ½ oz lemon juice
- ½ oz lavender syrup
- Soda water
Pour over ice in a tall glass. Top with soda water and garnish with a lemon wheel or a sprig of fresh lavender.
Flavor Profile
Imagine citrus sunshine and floral breezes with a spicy bourbon foundation. It’s easy-going and crushable.
Violet Boulevardier
A broody, floral spin on a timeless classic.
Ingredients
- 1 oz Bardstown Bourbon
- 1 oz sweet vermouth
- ¾ oz Campari
- ¼ oz crème de violette
Stir with ice and strain over a large cube into a rocks glass. Garnish with an orange twist.
Flavor Profile
Bitter and bold with a gentle violet whisper. If the Aviation and Boulevardier were to have a love child, it would be this—rich, balanced, and utterly surprising.
Why Bourbon Deserves a Place in Your Summer Cocktail Lineup
When temperatures rise, most reach for gin, tequila, or rum. But bourbon? That’s the unexpected choice, and the one with the most to offer.
Bardstown Bourbon Company’s Bourbon proves that bourbon isn’t limited to Old Fashioneds and fireside pours. It thrives in warm-weather cocktails where bold spice and rich depth can play against bright citrus, fresh herbs, and floral elements.
This is bourbon designed for the modern cocktail thinker. Someone who values flavor, craftsmanship, and creativity.
Final Sip: A Toast to Creativity
Summer cocktails should be a surprise—to be savored slowly beneath string lights, shared with friends, and recalled long after the final drop. The Bourbon Aviation accomplishes just that. It reinvents a classic with a bold twist, demonstrating that when you combine ageless sophistication with fearless innovation, magic occurs.
Bardstown Bourbon Company’s Origin Series isn’t your run-of-the-mill bourbon. It adds structure and spice that quite effortlessly elevate the floral delicacy of the Aviation, turning it into something memorable. This is where sweet violet comes together with citrus brightness and spicy oak, all harmoniously combined.
But more than a beverage, the Bourbon Aviation is a state of mind. It challenges you to color outside the lines of convention. To defy the rules. To recombine the old into something boldly new. The next time you pick up your shaker, think outside of gin. Grab bourbon. Grab character. Grab the kind of pour that takes flavor—and imagination—beyond.
Because bourbon is no longer just for fireside drinking. It’s for rooftops, for backyard toasts, for cocktail menus that are not afraid to be different. So what are you waiting for? Find out where you can also find our core Bardstown Bourbon.
